Morgan Stanley infrastructure fund raises $4bn in initial commitments

The investment management firm said the fundraising for the Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners fund significantly exceeded its initial target of $2.5bn (£1.3bn).

Investors in the fund include pension funds, insurance companies and high net worth individuals.

The fund targets investments in assets that provide public goods or essential services – sectors such as transportation, energy and utilities, social infrastructure and communications.

Morgan Stanley co-president James Gorman explained: "The successful fund-raising underscores the particular demand for infrastructure investment, and broadly, for alternative assets that generate long-term stable cashflows."

Gorman said: "Infrastructure is now an important component of any asset allocation strategy; it offers portfolio diversification and the ability to invest in real assets, with uncorrelated investment returns relative to other asset classes."

Morgan Stanley Infrastructure global head and chief investment officer Sadek Wahba added: "The current challenging market conditions are creating unique opportunities in the infrastructure sector, and we are benefiting from our global footprint that is generating a strong pipeline across the Americas, Europe and Asia."